Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-10

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The two different layout plans of college cafe is given for description. Both plans of college cafe before redesign and after redesign is mentioned and their salient features will be discussed.

The design of college cafe before renovation was simple enough, though it has a large kitchen at corner and have serving area faces towards a huge hall. Within the hall there are two rooms reserved for staff dining area whereas student were served in main huge hall. Toilet area was at the right corner of the hall.

It was crystal clear that after renovation cafe looks changed alot, there five different points for different types of food i-e hot meals, salad bar, barbecue, coffee bar and for take away food. In new setup they also introduce outdoor sitting area beside of indoor sitting. The cafe has now three entrance and avoid overcrowdness.

The open area has barbecue stall at the corner which amuse mostly students.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the broad change from a simple café to one with more food options and outdoor seating, and you mention several relevant features, including the kitchen, staff rooms, toilets and barbecue. However, the comparison is only partial: important changes such as the new salad bar, recycling bins replacing the bin, and the two new southern doors are not clearly described. The claim that there are “five different points” for food also groups the barbecue with indoor counters and does not explain their locations. The overview is vague, and the final comment that the barbecue “amuse[s] mostly students” is unsupported by the plans. To develop the response, summarise the main structural changes accurately and compare the old and new layouts by location.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure: an introduction, a description of the former layout, and comments on the redesigned café. This gives the reader some organisation, and the contrast signalled by “after renovation” is relevant. However, progression is uneven: the new features are listed together without a clear spatial order, and the final sentence repeats the barbecue point rather than adding a useful comparison. Connections between ideas are also limited; for example, “In new setup” does not clearly link the food counters to the earlier description. Grouping changes by area—north, west, centre and south—and using clear comparison links such as “whereas” or “in contrast” would make the account easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “layout plans,” “serving area,” “staff dining area,” “outdoor sitting area” and “salad bar,” so the reader can understand the general subject. There is also an attempt to use less common language in “salient features” and “overcrowdness.” However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “points for different types of food,” “huge hall,” and “amuse mostly students.” Repetition of “area” and “hall” also limits precision. Choose vocabulary that describes the plan directly, such as counters, seating, entrances and facilities, and avoid adding claims about how students feel when the diagram provides no such information.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts both simple and more extended sentence forms, for example, “Within the hall there are two rooms reserved for staff dining area whereas student were served in main huge hall.” However, errors are frequent and sometimes make relationships unclear. The opening has subject–verb agreement problems (“plans … is given”), and “there five different points” is missing a verb. Other examples include “cafe … have,” “student were served,” and “they also introduce,” where agreement or tense is incorrect. Articles and plurals are also inconsistent, as in “at corner” and “staff dining area.” Use the past tense for the former plan and the present tense for the current one, and check each sentence for a complete subject and verb.

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